Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Rockwall High School Ag Class a Popular Choice Among Students

A few weeks ago, USA Today published an article about an FFA program in St. Louis that illustrates how broad and diverse agriculture is today. The story also reported how students of various backgrounds are being introduced to the choices they have when considering agriculture as a profession.

Right here in Texas, students at Rockwall High School also are exploring the ever-growing field of agriculture. As described in this Dallas Morning News story, Casey Jones is the only Texas teacher currently qualified to teach Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE), a project of the National Council for Agricultural Education.

CASE recognizes that agriculture is much more than the food we eat and the clothes we wear. It’s a big part of our economy, and it’s growing. Students in the Rockwall program are developing skills for a variety of career paths that can lead to commodity markets, biology labs and veterinarian training.

It was exciting to learn each CASE unit offers national standards in core subjects such as English, science and math. Even if a student is not necessarily planning a career in production agriculture, he or she will have many career choices and will be better prepared for the rigors of college. This is a great example of the many good things happening in Texas agriculture, and the program in Rockwall could be a model for schools across the state.

No comments: